Category: agriculture

Para kanino ka bumabangon? Borrowed from a popular TV advertisement, Dante Frias, JVOMFI Program Manager, asked this question to the participants as they started to fill in their vision boards. Everyone seemed enthused as they flip the pages of the magazine looking for something that envisioned their goals and dreams in life. Some cut-out pictures of children going to school, happy families, health ambassadors, travel advertisements, gadgets, convertible cars, and business ventures.

Although the glossy pictures in the magazine enabled them to visualize their goals and dreams in life, they were reminded that it was still a long journey ahead – a financial journey to realizing these goals and dreams. And so Mr. Frias and the JVOMFI team discussed the seven financial skills in helping them reach their goals and dreams.

The JVOMFI were given a topic to discuss. Mr. Frias started with the topic Identifying Financial Goals. Alejandro Fuenzalida and Daniel Challoy, JVOMFI Account Officers (AO) discussed Budgeting, Planning, and Preparing Individual Budgets. Branch Manager Jayson Pascua and AO Raquel Ozo discussed the Value of Savings. Branch Manager Dixon Dodon and Beatriz Durante discussed the Value of Investment.  Ms. Raquel Lawa, JVOMFI bookkeeper, and AO Romeo Garcia discussed Credit Management. And the final topics, Financial Freedom and Failure; and Protecting your Assets were discussed by Mr. Frias and Mr. Giovani Otto.

The participants were also taught how to compute their net worth, and create their income statements and monthly budget. Some of the participants realized they have assets while some were surprised that they were able to overcome challenges in their lives despite their limited budget.

The Jaime V. Ongpin Microfinance Foundation, Inc. staff conducted the financial literacy training on Sept 08 and September 15, 2022, in partnership with the Tuba and Sablan Municipal Agriculture Office. The training was provided as part of the farmer’s field school (FFS) program of the Municipal Agriculture Office of Tuba and Sablan a 5-month project funded by TELUS Philippines Inc. The project targets to assist 80 farming household members.

The participants were thankful to JVOMFI for the training “Naragsak iti adda savings na, nu adda umay nga rigat, adda iti mausar. Dakayo nga mas younger, mayat nu dyay ubing kayo pay lang nga ag-urnong. Haan pay nga agcollege ti ubing, dakami marikna mi ti rigat nga agsasabay nga adda bayadan diyay balay ken agpaeskwela. Iyaman ko nga napadasak iti kastoy nga seminar, nga adda immay nga nangisuro kenyami. Adda guide mi nga mangrugi manen. salamat.” (It is good to have savings; we have money to spend when challenges come. To the younger generation, it is good to start saving while you are young, while your children are not yet in college. We feel the difficulty of paying house expenses while sending our children to college. I feel grateful for having to attend this seminar, that someone came to teach us. This will serve as a guide for us to start again. Thank you.) one participant said. “Mamimira-ot kami ngay, manipod idi elementary ti anak ko, iggana nag college di na pay napadpadas iti sumrek ti restawran. Dendenggek ti ibabagbaga yu ket makapasangit ken makaparagsak, makapatawa Addo ti naadal ko - how to manage, how to budget  and how to manage your business and be a good payer. Naimbag ta naamwak dagitoy. Isu dagitoy nga ipapaseminar you, the more pay nga i-aaply ko, ibilin ko iti anak ko ken apo.” (We are poverty-stricken since my child was in elementary until now that she is in college she never tried going to a restaurant. While listening to what the others have to say, I feel like crying, happy, and laughing.  I learned a lot -  how to manage, how to budget, and how to manage your business and be a good payer. It’s good that I learned about these. I will apply what I learned in this seminar and I will also instruct my children and grandchildren.), another participant said.

The back-to-back Season-long training on Organic Agriculture for the farmers of Taloy Norte, Tuba and Kamog, Sablan, and Benguet was launched on June 9, 2022, in Taloy Norte, and June 14, 2022, in Kamog, Sablan.

As of June 30, 2022, 50 farmers of Sablan and 40 farmers of Tuba have been training for more than a month weekly. The trainings are expected to be completed by October 2022 as part of the commitment to the Telus International Philippines funded project.

Mrs. Marivic Tuglin needed additional capital for their farm and from invitation of neighbors in Shilan, La Trinidad she started to be a client of JVOMFI. In 2016, she first used her loan to buy garlic, lettuce, and Chinese vegetable seedlings

During harvest season, buyers called “arangki” in local dialect, come and buy their produce, and these buyers transport and sell them in Metro Manila. However, if there are over supply of harvests the arangkis cannot buy them all so they sell the extra produce in the market or in the trading post.

As a client of JVOMFI for five years Mrs. Tuglin, is thankful to JVOMFI since it is a big help to them, especially during the times were the prices of vegetables go down and nothing is left for capital, they borrow from JVOMFI and use it to fund their farms for another cycle of sowing. “JVOMFI made a big contribution in times of need for our family. JVOMFI staff are easily approachable and it is easy to borrow from JVOMFI,” she said.

During the pandemic, we were severely affected, the prices of vegetables were down. No one is buying the vegetable due to lockdown and restrictions everywhere, unsold vegetables were damaged. Despite all these they continued planting and sowing and looked for other means to generate income. Mrs. Tuglin saw the demand for plotted plants so she also tried planting flowering and ornamental plants. They were able to profit from selling potted plants and thankful for the capital they borrowed from JVOMFI even during this pandemic.

Mrs. Tuglin is on her 10th cycle of loan. In her five years as client with JVOMFI she also availed emergency loan to augment educational expenses of her children.

She advices her fellow farmers and clients to do well in farming, make sure to use loans accordingly, just use it for its intended purpose, so we can see the returns and can help us in our everyday expenses.

“The rains stops us from planting and causes loss of income, now with a greenhouse, even when it rains I can still plant inside.” Just like his father before him, Tyler is an organic practitioner from Tublay, Benguet. He used to help his father in their farm and in 2007; he started to practice organic farming on his own.

 He learned from an acquaintance that JVOMFI started offering Greenhouse loan, so in 2018 he joined JVOMFI and in 2019 applied for a Greenhouse loan worth P50,000. He used the loan to purchase steel pipes to construct a 10ft by 60ft greenhouse.

“The greenhouse is a great help, I used to make around ₱5,000 monthly in this area, now I make around ₱10,000 monthly. In one year, I can make about six (6) cropping” Tyler said motioning where the greenhouse stands.  He continued that prior to having a greenhouse, production was low but now that they have a greenhouse, production yield is high. He markets his produce in LATOP joined LATOPMPC (La Trinidad Organic Practitioners Multipurpose Cooperative) Mountain-grown Natural Food Product of Porta Vaga.

As an organic practitioner, Tyler is proud that he contributes to the environment and consumers’ welfare.